Baked Spanish Tortilla with Land O Lakes Eggs

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I love eggs. When I’m by myself, I often to turn to easy quick egg based dish. A fried egg added onto of rice or pasta just transforms it to something magical and beyond tasty. A simple poached egg is the epitome of elegance. Chopped boiled eggs add ummph to a salad. I can go on and on. So naturally when Land Of Lakes asked me  try their eggs, the issue was deciding on what type of dish to narrow it down to. I chose something I’ve made recently while catering a Spanish themed party this past summer. The baked Spanish Tortilla, cut into little bites, were a hit served cold.

I admit the thought of a cold egg and potato dish didn’t win me over, but tasting believing. In fact the dish actually tastes better cold than right out of the skillet or oven. In Spain they make sandwiches with the leftovers. The flavors just merge after sitting a while and you have a tasty and satisfying dish. Waxy yellow potatoes are normally peeled and sliced and “boiled “  in two cups of olive oil with onions until soft. Be sure to get a waxy potato as opposed to a Russet, which will fall apart when cooking. Don’t be alarmed at the amount of olive oil as it will be drained off, and you can use the flavor infused oil for other dishes later. In Spain you traditionally cook the tortilla in a skillet, flip it onto a plate, put it back in and finish the other side in the oven or range. I prefer the easy method to just baking the eggs in the oven.  You get a perfect tortilla that won’t fall apart or break when flipping.

Baked Spanish Tortilla with Land of Lakes Eggs can be made the night before a brunch and refrigerated. I used small baby red potatoes with the skins. If you do this, it is important to refrigerate as potato skins left at room temp for several hours breed botulism. This is important to consider with any potato dish with skins. But since Tortilla is a dish best served cold or at room temp, you will be in good shape. I also added red peppers and sun dried tomatoes for color. While not authentic, try adding cheese or crumbled cooked chorizio to your Tortilla .Anything goes. Serve with warm crusty bread.

For more information on Land O Lakes Eggs please visit:

Land O Lakes website

Betty Crocker Blogger recipes

Land O Lakes Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LandOLakes
Land O Lakes  Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/LandOLakesKtchn

Disclosure:  This is a sponsored post from General Mills, but all opinions and original recipes  are my own.

Baked Spanish Tortilla with Land O Lakes Eggs
 
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This international favorite is easy to make and will wow your brunch crowd with its simplicity and flavor.
Recipe type: Entree
Serves: 8
Ingredients
  • 2 cups olive pomace oil or olive oil
  • 2 cups sliced potatoes
  • 1 large onion, sliced
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons chopped dry-pack sun-dried tomatoes
  • 1 dozen Land O’ Lakes® organic all-natural eggs
Instructions
  1. In 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat.
  2. Cook potatoes and onions in oil about 5 minutes, turning potatoes constantly for even cooking, until oil begins to simmer; add thyme, salt and pepper.
  3. Simmer about 10 minutes longer, turning potatoes constantly, until potatoes are soft and tender. (If potatoes begin to fry and turn brown during cooking, reduce heat.)
  4. Remove from heat; drain (do not wash skillet).
  5. Place potato mixture in medium bowl; cool slightly.
  6. Meanwhile, in same skillet, cook and stir bell pepper and sun-dried tomatoes over medium heat 1 minute; add to potato mixture.
  7. Break up potatoes a little with fork.
  8. Heat oven to 350°F.
  9. Line bottom of 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking parchment paper; grease side of dish with oil.
  10. In large bowl, lightly beat eggs with fork or wire whisk until well mixed.
  11. Add potato mixture to eggs; stir until blended.
  12. Carefully pour into baking dish.
  13. Bake about 30 minutes or until eggs are completely set and top is slightly puffed and golden; cool 15 minutes.
  14. Cover tightly and refrigerate at least 4 hours or until chilled.
  15. To serve, run thin knife around edge of tortilla to loosen. Place rectangular serving platter upside down on baking dish (be sure platter is at least as large as baking dish); carefully turn platter and baking dish over.
  16. Remove baking dish; peel off cooking parchment paper.
  17. Serve chilled.
Notes
This dish can be made and refrigerated the night before a brunch. For a milder flavor, you can substitute 1 or 2 sliced large shallots for the onion. While not authentic, you can add cheese or crumbled, cooked chorizio to your tortilla. Serve with warm, crusty bread. Anything goes
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Spicy Red Clam Soup

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It’s hard to believe October is flying by and we will be into November soon. During this time, the body changes and may get a little run down due to the  seasonal shift.For me there is nothing more enticing these days than exotic spicy soups to rev this old girl up. October has been crazy busy with regular work, social activity, and few catering gigs.  Someone asked my the other day via Twitter where I have been as I have literally dropped on the earth with all my activities. I’m living and working hard. As a result I have been spreading myself thin and fighting the good fight against completely getting ill. So far so good. These days,  stuck  in the affluent North Shore,surprisingly I have been finding some great food shops . My nearby favorite is the Korean Mega Store H Mart, where I find myself doing regular grocery shopping because the meat , fish , and produce is outstanding! While having the fish man wrap up some halibut for me , I saw freshly shucked clam meat for 2.99 a pound. I instantly knew soup was going to be on the menu as I recovered with a rare weekend off and Certain Someone away for a bit.

I’m going to call this creation a soup, as opposed to  a chowder. To save  my waistline from further punishment I used the concept of a red based Manhattan Clam Chowder as an inspiration. The tomato based clam chowder was created by the Portuguese of New England  who decided to omit the cream. That didn’t go well with some and in return it was called Manhattan Clam Chowder to differentiate the chowder styles and as some some sort of insult , because anything New York was insulting. Go figure. There are many types of chowders and I decided to create my own clam based soup. No potatoes or bacon for me. Just lots of spices, tomatoes garlic, bell and hot peppers as a base . Maybe my African roots are waking up. I took some food memories of my Nigerian father sauteing tomatoes, garlic, and peppers in hot  oil to flavor his fish or chicken Nigerian soups/stews. I then thought about hot spicy Szechuan flavors and Hungarian Hot Paprika. I was all over the place. But the end result is oh so good for cold blustery or rainy day. Enjoy. And your waistline will thank you too.

Spicy Red Clam Soup
 
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A spicy red based clam soup
Author:
Recipe type: soup
Serves: 5-6 cups
Ingredients
  • 2 lbs clam meat fresh, canned, or frozen
  • 5-6 plum tomatoes chopped ( can leave skins on)
  • 5-6 cloves of garlic minced
  • 1 bell pepper minced finely
  • 1-2 hot peppers( Serrano, Korean, Jalepeno, etc) depending on your heat tolerance. Seeded and minced.
  • 5 cups chicken broth or 3 tablespoons chicken soup base with liquid equivalent
  • 2 tablespoon rice vinegar (milder in flavor)
  • 3 Tablespoons paprika
  • 1 tablespoon Vegeta ( optional)
  • 2 teaspoons of Thyme
  • ¼ cup Sherry
  • Red Pepper flakes to taste
  • Salt and pepper to taste if needed
  • Olive Oil
Instructions
  1. In a pot add a few tablespoons of olive oil and heat .
  2. Add chopped tomatoes , garlic and green peepers. Saute until cooked down and starting to break down.
  3. Add clams and some of their liquid ( about ¾ cup).( If canned there will be more and don't use as much). Cook for a few minutes.
  4. Add the chicken soup base and liquid or broth.
  5. Add rice vinegar, Vegeta ( Optional), Paprika, Thyme, and the minced hot peppers.
  6. Allow soup to come to a boil and reduce heat until a low simmer.
  7. Simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally and checking flavors. Clams should be tender.
  8. Adjust to your taste. If more liquid needed add more clam juice or broth.
  9. During the last 10 minutes , stir in the Sherry and simmer.
  10. Turn off heat and serve hot.
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Individual Apple Tarte Tatin

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Last week on a rare day off I was watching the BBC America station. Gordon Ramsay’s The F Word was on and I perked up as he made these easy gorgeous individual Pear Tatins studded with Star Anise. I had a bunch of commercial supply puff pastry in my freezer, left over from a event and a few apples left from my solitary apple picking adventure the week before. I was determined to try this stunning simple dessert with what I had and it didn’t disappoint.

The recipe is simple and you just need some fresh hard fruit , peeled and cored, sugar, butter, cinnamon or star anise, and maybe a splash or rum or brandy. Be creative. And of course serve with ice cream or whipped cream to up the indulgence factor. Your guests will be amazed and it saves the terror of flipping over a whole Tarte Tatin.

Here is Gordon’s version

And here is my breakdown

Individual Apple Tarte Tatin
 
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Individual Apple Tarte Tatins
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 1 cup of sugar
  • 2-3 tablespoons of butter
  • 2-3 large apples peeled, halved and cored
  • 4-6 squares of puff pastry
  • squeeze lemon juice
  • 1-2 tablespoons Brandy or rum
  • 4-6 whole pods of Star Anise
Instructions
  1. Prep your apples by peeling, halving, and removing the inner core and stem. Squeeze with lemon juice to prevent browning.
  2. Preheat oven to 375 F.
  3. In a heavy stainless steel skillet melt butter and sugar carefully and slowly until its starts to caramelize and brown. Be careful not to burn from sugar. You can add a splash or rum or brandy to the caramel.
  4. Quickly stud each apple halve with star anise . Wrap each piece individually with puff pastry leaving the flat half free and exposed.
  5. Place each pastry wrapped halve in the skillet with the caramelized sugar face down.
  6. Sprinkle with additional sugar is optional.
  7. Arrange in pan, and place in oven. Bake until golden .
  8. Serve face up and with ice cream or whipped cream.
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Making Petit Brie at Home and Baked Brie with Caramelized Onions

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As you can see from the last few posts I have been busy experimenting with Cheese making. Out of all the experiments I found the process of making Brie the most fascinating, even if not the most successful.  Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a success but I need to practice it more. The collage shows various stages of the  cheese with the bloom forming over the curds to make a white rind. The process takes at least a few months . I could have  been neater from the beginning with the curds . But I ended up with nice even smooth rind. Out of curiosity I cut into a  wheel and found my rind completely formed and it very runny inside. It was also a tad salty. The trick is to maintain proper temps in your fridge with aide of plastic boxes and later cheese wrapping paper, to create and control the climate and humidity .  Did I follow the temps exacatly? No , but I did the best I could with what I had and pretty pleased with the result. Like with the Feta, I followed two recipes from Home Cheesemaking and The Cheesmaker. I’m going to continue to age the other wheel and track the changes and see how far I can take it.

I don’t think I will be offering my clients my homemade Brie anytime soon, but I did make this great dish for a recent Baby Shower I catered. Imagine hot  oozing Brie baked in its crate  and topped with caramelized onions to be scooped on bread or crackers.  It will be hit for your holiday entertaining and a different twist on the old Brie wrapped in pasty and filled with jam.  I adapted this go to recipe from Hors d’Oeuvre at Home with the Culinary Institute of America.

 

Warm Baked Brie with Caramelized Onions
 
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Appetizer
Recipe type: Coco Cooks
Ingredients
  • 1 wheel of Brie frozen for 30 minutes in wooden crate
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 2-3 large onions thinly sliced
  • 4 cloves of garlic chopped
  • Fresh Thyme minced
  • ½ cup Sherry or Cognac
  • Fresh ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. In a skillet, melt butter.
  2. Add onions and saute until tender. Reduce heat. Do not brown the onions. Constantly stir until onions soften.
  3. Add garlic and salt and Thyme..
  4. Continue to cook onions until the start to become golden and soften.
  5. At 10 minutes intervals add a bit of the sherry or cognac and continue to cook onions on a low heat as they absorb the liquid. Continue to stir. Repeat this until all the liquid is used and the onions are soft and brown.
  6. Preheat oven to 350.
  7. Remove onions from heat and reserve or refrigerate until ready to use.
  8. Freeze Brie for 30 minutes before baking. This prevents the cheese from running out of the wooden crate.
  9. Cut off the top rind only.
  10. Spread the caramelized onions on top of Brie.
  11. Cover with foil and place wheel of Brie back in crate.
  12. Place cheese on a baking sheet and bake for approx 30 minutes or until cheese is melted.
  13. Serve in its wooden box.
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How To Make Feta Cheese at Home and Chicken Rollups with Feta and Spinach

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I may not have been posting as frequently these days, but that doesn’t mean I’m not working on some great culinary projects.  In August The Alchemist and I went to a cheese making class were we learned in a group setting how to make various cheeses. Our section worked on making Feta. As the class was only a few hours, it was condensed, and the finished product which we had to divide and share, wasn’t salted or complete. But we learned the theories and principles. So armed with my own copy of Home Cheese Making by Ricki Carroll.  I found a great site for cultures and supplies and decided to commence on two projects. Feta Cheese and Petit Brie. Over the past year I also have aquired some supplies from this source. So you see it really isn’t that complicated to get started on your own cheese. Naturally raw milk, if you can get it, is best. Check with with your local CSA’s or farms.It’s worth the effort. However , if you can’t access raw milk, use PASTEURIZED but NOT ULTRA PASTEURIZED milk. I have found a good brand of goats milk from Whole Foods, but nothing compares to fresh. Read the labels to make sure it’s just pasteurized. In the beginning making your own cheese is not cheap, but its so worth it.

Feta is a Greek cheese that is soft and crumbly and is made from sheep (preferably) or goats milk. Feta literally means slice or piece and references the process of cutting the curds in the cheese making.   As time goes on with the aging process, the salt added to the cheese draws out more liquid. It can be aged in Brine as well. Lipase is found in goats milk which gives Feta a stronger and distinct flavor. You can purchase lipase( from your cheese making supply) and add it if using another sort of milk. But traditional Feta is made with either sheep’s or goats milk. Today Feta has Protected Designation of Origin ( POD) by the EU. That means only  cheese made in the traditional Greek style/ method of sheep  and or goats and sheep milk can legally be called Feta. Unlike the similar Danish cheese made with cows milk, which really isn’t Feta under this law. Think of it like sparkling wine or authentic Champagne made in the Champagne region of France.

I followed three recipes and found they were mostly  similar. I took my Feta an extra step and made a Brine with the leftover  whey and salt to age for 30 days. The salt mellows out over time and it’ s  wonderful but stronger in flavor than fresh Feta. So if you have the patience it’s worth it. If you don’t, you can have the Feta cheese in few days after aging . Count on setting aside a day for the process. A lot of it is waiting  for it coagulate , ripen, stir, and  mostly draining. So you wont be glued to the kitchen.

I have a recipe for you today for a dish I  made with Feta. But here is a good recipe for the actual making of the Feta Cheese. I urge you to invest in Home Cheese Making by Ricki Carroll. You can get everything you need and the recipe here. I find that even though I used store purchased goat’s milk, my cheese held up in the brine . I used Angelic Farms recipe for the brine . 5 tablespoons of salt ( Kosher or sea salt) dissolved in 20 oz of Whey. It did not disintegrate. I also invested in Mad Millie’s Feta Mold and Brining Container.

I hope to share my Brie posts with you soon. It’s aging nicely in the fridge.

“Blessed are the Cheesemakers”

Monty Python’s Life of Brian

 

Chicken Rollups with Feta and Spinach
 
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Entree
Author:
Recipe type: Cheese
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 4-5 Boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 1 lb Fresh spinach
  • 1 cup of Feta
  • I small can stewed tomatoes or canned cherry tomatoes
  • Marjoram
  • Black Pepper
  • Salt
  • Olive Oil
Instructions
  1. Pound your chicken breasts with a meat tenderizer. Salt and Pepper to taste and set aside.
  2. On a cutting board roll up and julienne your fresh spinach leaves and place ribbons into a bowl. Reserve some for the later.
  3. Add Feta and crumble and mix with the Spinach.
  4. Taking the breasts, sprinkle the feta and spinach mixture on top and carefully roll up.
  5. Place in a oiled casserole or stainless steel pan that goes into the oven. Seams side down.
  6. Sprinkle with Marjoram and more salt and pepper to taste.
  7. Pour the stewed tomatoes and juice on top of the stuffed chicken breasts.
  8. Add the rest of the spinach and mix into the liquid so it stays moist.
  9. Preheat oven to 375.
  10. Cover with foil or cover and bake ½ hr . After ½ hour remove foil cover and let continue to cook until chicken is done and the liquid is bubbling. Be sure the spinach on top stays in the juices so if softens/ wilts and cooks. This will take approximately one hour.
  11. Serve with pasta or rice.
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